Insulated rail-joint.



5g@ agg" No. 373,492; y PATENTED DBO. 1`o, 1907. J. H. BRGTHBRS. INSULATBD RAIL JOINT.

APPLICATION FILED SBYT- 7.#1807. I

2 SHEETS-SIIEBT 1.

PATEN'IED DEG. 10, 1907. J. H. BROTHERS.

Nog 873,492.

/ lu van l'oz 60 ja/Wes Brea/1i with @den y' ria-873,492.

UNTTEDl sTnTEs PATENT OriuoE. N

JAMES n` BROTHERS, oF NEWARK, Nnu7 JERSEY, AssIGNOR To THE RAIL JOINT COMPANY, A

CORPORATION or NEW YORK.

INSULATED RAIL-JOINT.

specification of Letters Patent.

Patented D'ec. 10, 1907.

Original application filedMarch 22.1907'. Serial No. 363.921. Divided and this application filed September 7. 1907. serai No. 391.847.

l To all 'whom 'it may coi/wenn:V

j Be it known that LJAMEs H. BROTHERS, a

.citizenof the United States, residingat Newark, in the county oi Essex and Stateof h' ew Jersey, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements yin Insulated 'Rail-Joints, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to the art of insulated rail joints, and 'has special reference to certain novel and practical improvements therein designed to provide a solid metallic -imposed onthe rails by t e passing' trains.

Hence', a distinctive object of .the inven bearing support at' the under sides of the rail heads, and falso to maintain an effective, in-

sulation'throughout the joint. j

To this endftheinvention contemplates an insulated rail joint wherein no insulation is interposed direetlyibeneath the-heads of the rails and thev metallic bars of the' joint next -to the same, thereby allowin the heads' oi the rails to take a solid, direct caring on the said joint bars, and 'permitting of the pro- .vision fofsuch a bearing' or 'bearings for the .insulating members or material as to more electually safeguard'the same from 'owing, ofcutting out, under the ressure of the-load Y tion resides in a construction which obviates the necessity of placing insulating material directly between the rail sides and heads and j the' adjacent joint bars, vand at lthe same j' timeproviding a novel arrangement of discontinuous ller members for each rail, and continuous splice'bars for both rails, whereby the-bearin area for the insulating material is increase vto a greater extent than the area ofthe under sides of the rail heads.

"'Injother words, the invention provides a novel construction, combination, and arrangement of parts serving to increase,y in a practicalmanner, the bearing area for the insulating material, and 'decrease the fiber strain, thus enabling the material to better e withstand the load imposed.'

` view, which will more readily'appear'as the With these land. many other objects in nature of the invention is better understood, the same consists in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of parts hereinaftermore fully described, illustrated, and

claimed.

` A few preferred embodiments of the invenjoint embodying the present invention, the

line of section being adjacent to one oi' the joint bolts. Fig. 4 is a similar sectional view of another modified form of joint embodying the invention.

Like references designate corresponding parts in the several figures of the drawings.

A distinctive feature of the present invention resides in an insulated joint having outer splice bars, discontinuous inner filler members or filler bars next to the rails, and insulation between the splice bars and the filler members, the latter being arranged to engage` the under sides of the rail heads and having flanges, the area of which flanges is greater than the area of the under sides of the rail heads, whereby an increased bearing area is provided for the insulation with a consequent reduction of the fiber strain. This thought may be embodied in several forms of construction, and is well exemplified by the design of joint shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings. This joint includes in its general organization the service rails l and 2, the continuous spiice bars 18, the discontinuous filler members or bars 19, and the joint bolts 20. The op ositely arranged splice bars 18 extend the .'ull length of the joint between the two rails, andthe filler members or bars 19 are located at the innersides of the splice bars'and take a direct bearing against the rails and beneath the under sides 5 of the rail heads. The filler members are not coeXtensive in length with the splice bars,.and therefore do not extend the lfull length of the joint, as each rail end has tted thereto a pair vof separate discontinuous iller members '19 arranged respectively upon opposite sides thereof and terminating at the endoi the rail, as plainly shown in Figs. l1 and 2 of the drawings.

All of the said illerlmenibersA are ypreferably' duplicates in design and construction, and each ott-he same is illustrated as provided at its upper edge with a bearing head 21 for engagement at the under side ot' the rail head, and at its lower edge is provided with an outwardly detiected inclined toot llange 22 overlyingthe rail base, and having formed integral therewith the out-- standing reinforcing and spiking flange 23, and the bottom horizontal base section or base plate 24 arranged beneath and supporting the base. In the form ofjoint shown in Figs. 'i and 2, each iiller member 19 has its upright portion or girder in the form of a 'channeled bar which produces at the upper edge thereof not only the bearing head 21,. .but also an outwardly extending bearing projection or flange 25 Whose bearing face is -ot greater area than the area pf the under side of the rail head, and .is designed 'to bear on the upper outturned iange 26 of the side insulating lsheet 27. This side insulating sheet' 27 is interposed between the filler member19 referred .to and the splice bar 18 which registers in .the channel of the fillerv member, and said insulating sheet 27 is also provided at its lower edge with a lower outturned `lange 28, said ianges 26 and 28' j being interposed respectivelybetween the vtop and bottom edges "of the splice bar and the opposing inclined faces of thev filler member.

By reason of the construction described, it will be observed that while each filler member' or bar takes va solid 'metallic bearing under the head of the rail, the same presents a bearing surface-for thel insulation of greater area than the area of the under side of the rail head,- hencev providing an' increased bearing area for the `insulation with a consequent reduction of the fiber strain.

In the form of joint just described, thel same is completed by the joint bolts 20, and

to provide for a proper bolt insulation any of the well known bolt insulating expediente may be employed, such for instance as insulating bushings or sleeves 14 lining the bolt holes in the filler members and splice bars, and the-insulating washers 15 separate 'from or integral with the outer ends of the bushings or sleeves 14 and arranged between thev outer faces of the 'splice bars and the backingwashers 16 which are disposed, as usual, at the inner sides of the heads and nuts of the bolts. the joint, it is to be further-observed that by reason'of the discontinuity of the filler .members, that is,I the employment of iller members foreach rail (which iiller members terminate at the end of said rail), the joint can be effectively insulated by having a one-end yinsulation only therefor, that is, having the insulating material applied to the parts associated with one of the rails instead of beingassociated with both.

In `Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the

In connection vviththe insulation of' larly dispose parallel with, and lying opposite, the ottjoint is illustrated as having the side insulating sheets arranged in connection with the filler members of both rails, and the insulation of the joint is completed bythe employment of the end insulation or end insulating post 29 interposed between the rail ends and also bet'w een the ends of the discontinuous tiller members 19.

A still further modification of the invention is shown inl Fig. 3 of 'the drawings, which illustrates a vjoint comprising the usual service rails, the Aouter continuous splice bars 36, the discontinuousfiller members 37,- and the joint bolts 38, the. latter being provided withinsulating means such as described. Each vfiller member 37 is illustrated as provided at its upper edge 'with a bearing head 39 for engafrement beneath the rail head, and at its Iower edge with afoot flange 40 overlying the rail base. Also, the splice bar 36 is illustrated ashav- -ing its upright or girder member of a channel formation so as to produce at the upper edge of the,s' lice bar an outturned angubearing flange 42 arranged standing'bearing flange 41 projectedv outwardly from the upper portion of the filler member. Furthermore, thesplice bar 3 6 is formed with a lower ange member 43 overlying the foot flange 40 of the filler member. The said lower flan fe member 43 has formed integrally therewitihthe outstanding reinforcing and spiking ange 44, and the lbottom horizontal base section 45, which latter underlies the rail base. A side insulating sheet 46 is interposed between the splice bar" and the filler member, and is provided at its upper edge with a top ilange 47 interposed between the flanges 41 and 42 ,of the iiller member and splice bar, and at its lower edge the side insulating sheet is formed with anapron extension 48 extending over the outer edges of the foot 'lange 4() and the rail base flange and having continued therefrom a bottom insulating section 49 lyin between the. base section 45 andthe rai It Awill Vbe observed that the formation of the individual iiller members 37 provides an extended bearing surface for the insulation, which is of greater area than the area of the contact between the filler members and the under side of' the rail head.

The invention'is further exemplified by the modification showngin Fig. 4 of the drawings. The joint illustrated in this igure of the drawings is similar in its general design, and essential features, to the joint shown in Fig. 3, and embodies the usual service rails, the continuous splice bars 50 and 67, the discontinuous filler members 52 and the joint bolts 53, the latter beingprovided with suitable insulating means, preferably such as described. Each iiller member 52 is provided at its upper'edge with a bearing l form of the joint shownin Fig. 4 of the draw ings, the said oll'standing bearing projection or flange of the filler member 52, at the out side lol the rail, is adapted to overlie an outturned angular-ly disposed bearing flange 57A deflected outwardly from the upper edge of the continuous splice bar` 50 located at the `outer side of the joint. It Will be observed that the said outer slpliee bar '50 is provided with an upright gir( formation producing the said upper bearing flange 57 and the lower flange member 58- overlying the foot flange 54 of the filler mem'- ber 52. 'The' said lower flange member 58 of the outer spli'cebar 50 has formed integrally therewith lthe outstanding reinforcing and spiking llange 59, andthe bottom hori- Zonta of the invention, -a distinctive feature thereof resides in the fact that the integral base section 60, carried by the outer splice bar 50,- is-of a iwidthcoextensive Wi th,.or greater than, the width of extend entirely under the rail base to the inside of the rail, as plainly shown iii-Fig. 4 of the drawings. To provide 'for an ellective insulation of the parts cooperating with the said outer splice bar 50, a side,- insulating sheet 61 is interposed between said splice bar and the filler member 52, which side-insulating sheet is formed -at its upper edge with a vflange extension 63, interposed .between the lbearing projection ing flangel 57. At

insulating sheet is formed with an apron extension 64 extending over the outer edges lof 'the foot flange 54 andthe rail base, and

having j continued therefrom a bottoml insulating section'64a lying between the full width base section and the rail base.

than thearea of er member of achannel' base section 60. In this embodimentthe rail base so as toor flangel 55 and the bean' its lower edge, lthe said- Another distinctive feature of the design of joint, shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings, resides in associating with the llermember 52, arranged at the inside of the rail, al channel or equivalent splice bar 67 having intere' osed between the same and' the ac jacent llller member 52, a side insulating sheet 68 of substantially responding insulating of the drawings. Y

Other modifications will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art, andit will be understood that various changes in the form, proportion, and minor detailsof vconstruction may be resorted to Without de art ing from the' spirit or sacrificing any o the advantages of the invention.

I claim:

1. In a rail joint, the rails, vcontinuous splice bars and discontinuous f iller'membels, said liller members being arranged at the sides of each rail and having a bearin against the under sides of the rail heads and also having bars.

l2. In a rail joint, the rails, continuous splice bars and separate discontinuous filler members, said` filler members being arranged at the sides of each rail and having a direct bearing lagainst the under sides ofthe rail heads, said filler members having ort-ions overlying thespllce bars which are 0 greater area'thanthe area ol the under sides of the rail heads.

3. In' an insulated rail joint, therails, continuous splice bars, searate diso'ontinuous filler members arranger: at the sides of each rail and having a bearing against the under side of the rail heads and on top'of the s lice bara-and, insulating material interpose( be tweenthe lille-r members and the splice bars'.

" In testimony whereof I hereunto aflix my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

JAMES H. BROTHERS.

sheet shown in Fig. 2

the same form as the cor-v portions overlying the splice- 

